History

Two of life's most important things make up Innsbrook's history: family and nature.

When it comes to real estate developments and lake communities, ownership often switches hands every five years or so. But Innsbrook is different. As one of St. Louis’ premier lake communities, Innsbrook has miraculously remained under the same ownership since its inception in 1971.

The American Dream is alive and well, and the story of how Innsbrook came to be is a testament to that ideal. Ed Boyce, Innsbrook’s founder and Chairman since its inception in 1971, is a shining example of how a regular guy, with a little perseverance and a lot of ingenuity, can make his dream come true.

In the late 1950s, the energetic and clever then-23-year-old Boyce had an idea to sell hooded sweatshirts sporting the text, “U.S. Olympic Drinking Team.” The shirts were advertised in Playboy magazine at a price of $5.75. “We sold 50,000 in 10 months,” Boyce recalled. “I retired to the mountains of Colorado and became a ski bum.”

That's when Boyce first set eyes on an A-frame chalet by an Aspen stream, and was gripped by an idea that became the core of a sprawling A-frame resort development that would dominate the wooded hills of Missouri’s Warren County.

Warren Wobbe Sr. joined Boyce and his venture in 1969 and the Aspenhof development, located in Warren County on Highway 47, was completed in September of 1971. Aspenhof consisted of 520 acres with 154 chalets. In that same month, the two entrepreneurs began a project that would grow to be almost 15 times the size of Aspenhof, and would come to be known as Innsbrook.

Les Buechele joined Boyce and Wobbe in 1972 and nine years later, the first phase of the Innsbrook development was finished: 434 A-frames, more than 20 lakes, six tennis courts and 40 miles of road on its 1,600 acres.

The name “Innsbrook” is a nod to the scenic capital of Austria’s Tyrol region, another place where beautiful A-frames can be found clustered around small lakes. Although the name’s inspiration came right out of Europe, the idea definitely stemmed from deep in Colorado. “We brought together nature, recreation and serenity,” Boyce said.

The Innsbrook Corporation continued to purchase land along Highway F in Warren County throughout the ‘70s. In 1980, they opened the second phase of the development on the east side of Highway F.

The 137-acre Lake Aspen is a focal point for the east side of the development, which is also home to tennis and pickleball courts, a restaurant, lodge-style event center, and an 18-hole golf course; in addition to A-frame chalets for second homes; one-, two- and three-bedroom condominiums; residential and vacation homes; and villas.

After growing up at Innsbrook, Boyce's son, Charlie, and Wobbe's son, Warren "Chip" Wobbe Jr., officially joined the Innsbrook Corporation team in the late '80s.

After much planning, discussion and petition-gathering, Innsbrook was approved by the Warren County Commissioners as a village on July 21, 1998. And today, we are on the map as Innsbrook, Missouri, and proud of it.

In 2000, construction began on 236-acre Alpine Lake, Innsbrook's largest. We're currently in the early development stages of the Tyrolean area south of Alpine Lake. The area includes rolling forests, the new Tyrolean nature trail and a historic log cabin, which has been recently donated to, and restored by, the Innsbrook Historical Society.

In 2013, the first cottage display of our new "Cottages at Alpine Woods" community opened (and was sold) and the second display was finished in 2014.

With more than 7,500 acres (that's over five-and-a-half-times the size of Forest Park!) and over 100 lakes, Innsbrook is a wonderful, one-of-a-kind recreational living community that we look forward to sharing for years to come.